Gyoza was introduced to Japan from China, but underwent a delightful transformation. The dough became thinner. The taste was enriched with Japanese spices and sauces. Even the cooking method changed: gyoza is pan-fried on one side, then steamed to ensure a crispy bottom and tender top.

Ingredients for 5-8 servings:

For the filling:

• 300 gr ground pork, chicken or beef
• 150 gr Chinese cabbage (napa), chopped
• 100 gr shrimps, peeled, deveined and chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda (a pinch)
• 1 teaspoon corn starch
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon dark soy sauce (if you don’t have it, you can replace dark with light soy sauce)
• 1 teaspoon light soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon sake (or shaoxing wine)
• 2 tablespoons sesame oil
• 3-4 scallions, chopped
• 1 tablespoon ginger, grated
• 1-2 cloves finely diced garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
• 1/2 teaspoon white or black pepper

For the wrappers:

• 270 gr flour
• 30 gr corn or potato starch
• 170 gr hot water
• 1 teaspoon salt, dissolved in hot water
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

 Preparation instructions:

1. Make the filling:
   • Chop and fry the napa cabbage until all moisture has evaporated. Or use it raw: salt it, rest 10 minutes, then squeeze out the excess water.
   • Combine ground pork (or other meat), napa cabbage, and chopped shrimps (500 grams in total).
   • Add soy sauce, sake, sesame oil, scallions, garlic, ginger, sugar, corn starch, baking soda, salt and pepper in a large mixing bowl.
   • Mix everything thoroughly until well combined. Set aside.
2. Make gyoza wrappers:
   • Weigh the flour on a kitchen scale. We need exactly 270 grams.
   • In a large bowl, mix the flour and corn starch.
   • Boil water and add salt to it, stirring until salt is completely dissolved.
   • Gradually add hot water to the flour, stirring with a rubber spatula or chopsticks.
   • Add 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil to the dough and knead it until smooth.
   • Cover the dough with a damp cloth or plastic wrap, and let it rest for about 30 minutes.
   • Now the dough is ready to be rolled out in a pasta machine or by hand. Sprinkle the dough with corn starch before rolling to prevent stacking the wrappers.
3. Wrap dumplings:
   • Roll out the dough into a thin sheet in a pasta machine or by hand, sprinkle some corn starch on a surface.
   • Cut out circles in the dough, using a round cutter or a cup.
   • Place a spoonful of the filling in the centre of each wrapper.
   • Fold the wrapper in half, creating a half-moon shape.
   • Pleat the edges to seal a dumpling.
4. Fry and steam the gyoza dumplings:
   • Heat vegetable oil in a non-stick pan over medium heat. It’s important to use a neutral oil with a high smoke point for this step, as we don’t want our oil to corrupt the flavour. So, avoid olive oil and coconut oil, use vegetable, canola or avocado oil instead.
   • Arrange dumplings in a frying pan, flat side down. Cook until their bottoms get golden brown.
   • Add water (about 1/4 cup) to the pan, cover with a lid, and steam for 4-5 minutes until the water has mostly evaporated.
   • Remove the lid, let the remaining water evaporate, add a teaspoon of sesame oil, and cook over medium heat until the dumpling bottoms turn golden and crisp.
5. Serve your gyoza dumplings alongside these flavourful Japanese dipping sauces.

Ingredients for the classic Gyoza Dipping Sauce:

• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 teaspoons rice vinegar
• 2 teaspoons sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• Finely grated garlic clove
• Grated ginger
• Chili flakes (adjust to your preferred level of spiciness)

Ingredients for the Dipping Sauce with Honey and Peanut Butter:

• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon Chinese black vinegar (you can replace it with 1/2 tbsp balsamic vinegar + 1/2 tbsp white wine vinegar)
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon flavoured oil
• Finely grated garlic clove
• 1 teaspoon peanut butter 
• 1 teaspoon honey